Monday, February 19, 2007

Yerba Mate Brands The Good and the Bad

Well like all things you have the really good brands of the tea and you got the stuff that taste awful hahha. Today I will actually be picking up 3 pounds of Yerba. Let me tell you a few brands to stay clear of. Rosamonte, it's absolutely awful this one had a real bad flavor to it. Cruz De Malta is not bad for the price, its around 4 to 6 dollars US for a nice big bag, its got a nice flavor but its still not the best. Amanda is a brand that I do recommend it's right there with the Cruz De Malta but I was never a huge fan of it. The brand I recommend and the most popular brand throughout the world is Taraguay, its got a superb taste to it. It's a great deal if you can get a hold of some. I recommend it, a friend of mine who has been drinking Yerba for over 50 years will only drink this brand. I fluctuate between this and the Cruz De Malta. I will cover my experience with drinking flavored Yerba in the next post. I recommend if you have a chance to check out the Organic its got a awesome taste to it, I will include some pics of it in here.

11 comments:

ha, that's really funny, because I have been drinking Yerba Mate for years and Rosamonte is my favorite and I hate Taraguay .. lol! Oh well to each his own I guess. I have a Yerba Mate page you might enjoy: http://www.yerbamatedrinker.com/ Peace! and EnJoY all that Tea! Nice blog you have. Will have to read up on the other teas.

I agree. I've been drinking la yerba for about 10 years and Rosamonte is the best. I get no aftertaste like I do with other brands. But then again I have only tried 5-6 others and there are many many more to try.

i prefer la hoja, for it's flavor and potency, my mother drinks rosamonte, taragui and cruz de malta but it seems that they don't give me the energy that la hoja does, but la hoja is stronger and you can tell by the taste, but once i started on this brand i couldn't go back.

I'm from Paraguay and i really recommend you try some brands from there, like Yerba Mate Pajarito and Indega. For most Paraguayans there is no better Yerba than ours. If you live in New York City or Miami you can find it in some stores otherwise you will have to shop around online for them.

I have to say that I prefer the brands from Paraguay. I like Pajarito, Selecta, and La Rubya. La Rubya is by far the best of the three, with a smoother flavour. That said I don't like the flavour of any brand I've tried from Argentina, so it you like that type of mate, then you might not agree with me.

What do you guys think of union, MAÑANITA and CANARIAS brands? I am new to mate, and these are the only ones I have tried. They are also, along with La Merced and Taragui, the only brands I can find available in Australia. I have also only tried loose leaf with stems, would you recommend trying without?

There's no hard and fast rule on what's good or bad, we each have our likes and dislikes. I definitely dislike Cruz de Malta and Amanda Despalada. CdM just seems tasteless to me. Rosamonte is better in cold weather, and Taragui and Nobleza Gaucha are good all-rounders. For tereré (cold mate), I prefer Indegas or Taragui mixed with fruit juice or fresh squeezed lemonade. I have just bought some different Selecta "yerba compuestas" but have yet to try them.

If you're looking to buy the Gourd, bombilla-straws, tea, and the bombilla cleaner visit:

MyMateWorld.com

They sell out their products fast, the shipping is good, and they have fans who like them on facebook. They also teach you how to clean it without mold accumulating on it after use. They offer it in bamboo, and with or without metal, or silver. Whichever you prefer.

I'm seriously thinking about ordering from them as soon as I get paid.